Red Bull launches its 2013 Formula 1 car, the RB9

Last year Red Bull won its third straight drivers’ and constructors’ championship, with Sebastian Vettel becoming the youngest ever triple champion after a close fight with Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso.

The RB9 is the ninth F1 car created by Red Bull since the energy drink giant took over the Jaguar team at the start of the 2005, hence the number nine in its name. The single-seater is powered by a Renault engine and has been designed by a team led by Adrian Newey. Red Bull’s head of design said at the end of last season that it would be difficult to improve the car in 2013 given that the rules remain the same and it will be the fifth season since the 2009 rule changes.

Like most rivals, the changes are focused on suspension. However the rear of the RB9 seems to be more compact. The paint scheme features a purple shade that is very noticeable on the sidepods, with title sponsor’s Infiniti name present on the sidepods and on the rear wing.

The new car was revealed at Red Bull’s home base in Milton Keynes, UK, by Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber, with the latter to shakedown the car in Jerez, Spain for the first preseason tests next week.

“It’s obviously one thing to look back on what we have achieved as a team, but I feel it all starts again from zero. It will be a long year again, a very tough challenge waiting for all of us. I’m looking forward to that and not thinking about what happened in the last year. People expect something of us, but more than that we expect ourselves to do well,” Vettel was quoted as saying by Autosport.